Welcome to today's Defense Business Briefing, your weekly roundup of the latest defense industry news.

Carlyle Group buys ManTech in $4.2B deal

Private-equity firm the Carlyle Group has purchased ManTech International in a deal worth $4.2 billion, both companies announced this week.

Raytheon aims to lock in foreign LTAMDS orders in tandem with Army's first production run

Raytheon Technologies is hoping to secure an overseas buyer for the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor in tandem with planned orders for the Army's initial production run in a bid to lower the current $130 million radar price tag, realize economies of scale and give a foreign military immediate parity with the service's newest and most sophisticated ground radar.

Northrop, Aerojet square off in contest for next-generation, hypersonic-slaying kill vehicle

An expected two-way contest to build a next-generation kill vehicle -- one optimized to counter hypersonic glide vehicles -- is coming to a head, pitting Northrop Grumman and Aerojet Rocketdyne for the chance to progress to the second and final phase of the Glide Breaker program.

CMMC early adoption program could be delayed due to rulemaking efforts

The Defense Department faces a calculated risk in terms of starting up third-party assessments under the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program for early adopters, according to contracting attorney Robert Metzger, who sees ongoing work to finalize changes to the Pentagon's acquisition rules as one barrier for the delayed interim launch.

Pentagon moves up timeline for release of interim final rules to implement CMMC program

The Defense Department is accelerating by two months its plans to implement changes to the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program, with the release of two interim final rules now expected in March 2023 and requirements to start showing up in contracts 60 days after the rules are published under a three-year rollout plan.

Biden taps DOD industrial policy chief

President Biden intends to nominate Laura Taylor-Kale to be assistant secretary of defense for industrial base policy, according to the White House.

Murray joins Vita Inclinata

John Murray, a retired four-star general and the first chief of Army Futures Command, will be a strategic adviser to the board of Vita Inclinata, whose products stabilize helicopter loads, according to a company announcement.

The week ahead

The week ahead is filled with congressional hearings and other events featuring senior Pentagon officials.

Shyu sends Congress $5.7B unfunded priorities list for DOD labs

Heidi Shyu, the Pentagon's chief technology officer, has sent Congress a $5.7 billion unfunded priorities list containing 126 military construction items related to Defense Department labs and testing facilities, according to documents obtained by Inside Defense.

U.S. military sets plan for high-stakes, shoot-down attempt of hypersonic glide vehicle

The U.S. military will attempt to shoot down a hypersonic glide vehicle in a high-stakes test that will inform plans for a next-generation guided-missile interceptor as well as assess the efficacy of currently deployed systems that are supposed to provide a last line of defense for aircraft carrier strike groups against Russian and Chinese ultrafast maneuvering weapons.